Fluid sealed packing gland



Nov. 6, 1934. A. BAUMANN 1,979,525

FLUID SEALED PACKING GLAND Filed July 16. 1929 Fig.1.

L L y 8 Fig.2.

29 Z v/ Invemor Adolf Baumann Lu Attorney Patented Nov. 6, 1934 TES'PATENT OFFICE FLUID SEALED PACKING GLAND Adolf Baum'anm'wettingen,Switzerland, assignor to Aktiengesellschaft BrownBoveri & Gie., Baden,Switzerland, a joint-stock company of Switzerland Application July 10,1929, Serial No. 377,296

7 In Germany July 18, 1928 l Claims.

This invention relates to-fluid-sealed packing glands in which theoperating medium handled by thedevice to be sealed is itself used as asealing medium.

' Itis often undesirable to use a special sealing medium, such as oil,for installations handling fluids such as is the case in-refrigeratinginstallations because of the danger of contaminating the Operatingmedium by contact therewith or n because of the formation of thereaction products bythe initiation of chemical action between thespecial sealing medium and the operating.

medium. Further, such special sealingmediums generally require aseparate circulating system which may fail to operate" when required andtaken directly from the compressor therefor,

avoids the necessity for a special sealing medium and anauxiliarycirculating system. i

It is, therefore,one of the objects of the present invention to providea sealing gland in which the fluid operating edium itself is utilizedasthe sealing medium.

3 Another object of the invention is to provide a structure in which themachine to be sealed is itself used as the sealing medium. I

, Another object of the invention is to provide a structure in which thewhole of the fluid operating medium of a fluidhandling installation isconductedthrough a sealing gland for sealing the shaft of thecompressoro'r circulator therefor.

' A further object of the invention is to so arrange a refrigeratinginstallation that the packing glandfor the compressor shaft is sealed bythe refrigerant flowing from the condenser to the vaporizer. "Objectsand advantages, other than those above set forth, will be apparent fromthe following description and the drawing in which;

Figure 1 is a view, partially in section, the sectioned portion beingenlarged for purposes of illustration, of one embodiment of the presentinvention, and

' Fig. 2 is a View, partially in cross-section, of a modification of astructure which may be utilized characters of reference, referencenumeral 3 indicates a compressor having the casing 4 there- 5 ofextended to receive the sealing gland strucmeans for circulating thefluid in 'connectionwith the embodiment-shown in,

ture', to be more specifically described hereinafter, through which ashaft 5 extends. The discharge of the compressor 3 is connected by aconduit 6 with a condenser 7 in which the high temperature, highpressure fluid is cooled and thereby, at least, partially liquefied.Condenser '7 is connected by a conduit 8 with the extension of thecasing 4 which is provided, at the point of connection with the conduit,with a spacer member 9 arranged about shaft 5 of the compressor, whichspacer member separates flexible packings 11 in such manner that aconsiderable distance is maintained between the packings, therebyforming an annular chamber about the shaft. A conduit 12 forms adischarge-passage from the space maintained by spacer member 9 to avaporizer 13 from which the fluid is returned to compressor 3 by aconduit 14. Conduit 12is provided with a suitable valve 16, which may bealso the pressure reducing valve when employedfor the passage offluid inthe so-called dry refrigerating systems, which is preferably ofthenon-return-type, andwith an intercooler 1'7, connected between theannular chamber maintained by the spacer 9 and the valve 16 whichprovides for radiation of the heat absorbed by the fluid in itspassagethrough the several conduits from condenser to vaporizer 13." Itwill be seen that the main flow of the fluid passes about shaft 5 of thecompressor 3, at right angles thereto, assisting in preventing theentrance of air into the compressor. This structure also serves thepurpose of cooling the shaft of the compressor, which usually operatesat high speed and is continually heated due to the friction between theshaft and its bearings and the packings arranged there-- about. It maybe necessary or desirable that only a portion of the operating medium beused as a sealing medium. Such use is also to be understood as withinthe invention.

As shown in the drawing, the end of the casing extension 4 is closed bya gland 24 and, in order that such small quantities of the refrigerantas may be forced along the shaft from the chamber, maintained by thespacer member 9, may be prevented from escaping through such gland intothe atmosphere, a portion of the refrigerant in its liquid high pressurestate is bled from the conduit 8 into conduit 18 and circulatedtherethrough about the vaporizer '13, where it is subcooled anddischarged through a second annular chamber, maintained about the shaft5'between the flexible packings 11 by a spacer member 19, into areservoir 21. Inserted in the conduit 18 is a valve 20 by which the rateand, therefore, the

pressure of the subcooled liquid refrigerant flowing through thechamber, maintained by the spacer member 19, may be regulated to suchvalues as will condense the refrigerant forced thereinto from thechamber, maintained by the spacer member 9, and maintain the space aboutthe refrigerant within the reservoir 21 at substantially atmosphericpressure. For discharging such quantities of refrigerant as may beforced from the chamber maintained by the spacer member 19, towards theend of the casing extension into the reservoir, the gland 24 is providedwith a chamber 26 having passages 27 and 28 leading therefrom into thereservoir 21; and a float valve 23 is provided in the reservoir 21whereby the level of the liquid refrigerant therein and the dischargethereof therefrom through a conduit 22 into the vaporizer 13 isautomatically controlled.

Instead of providing a spacer member 19 to form the sealing spacein thecasing extension, a chamber 29 may be formed therein to'receive a diskor flange 31 formed or fixed on shaft 5, as shown in Fig. 2. The annularportion of cham- 3 her 29 in which flange 31 rotates, maintains the sealby centrifugal action of flange 31 on the fluid contained therein.Itwill be apparent that such arrangement of sealing flange or disk onthe shaft provides for the most complete sealing of the entire packinggland insuch manner that loss of fluid along the shaft is minimized.

The use of a special sealing medium and a separate circulating systemtherefore is accordingly avoided. Further, it will be seen that thedanger of contamination of the fluid by contact purality of chambersarranged therein about said shaft, a condenser, a vaporizer, conduitmeans connected to form a path for flow of fluid serially through saidcompressor, condenser, one of said chambers, and vaporizer respectively,an

i element included in the connection between said one of said chambersand said vaporizer operable to cool said fluid flowing thereinto fromsaid one of said chambers, conduit means connected with the first saidconduit means at a point between said condenser and said one of saidchambers for withdrawing a portion of said fluid and for discharging thesame into another of said chambers, means for cooling said fluid flowingthrough the second said conduit means before discharging thereof intothe said another of said chambers,

valve means for regulating the rate of discharge of said fluid into saidanother of said chambers, and connections forming a path for dischargingsaid fluid from said another of said chambers into said vaporizer, theflow of said fluid through said chambers being operative to seal thesaid extension against flow of said fluid therefrom by way of saidshaft. I

2. In combination with a condenser, a vaporizer, and a machine forcompressing and continuously circulating a fluid serially through saidmachine, condenser and vaporizer, of means for preventing escape of saidfluid to the exterior of said machine comprising an extension for thecasing of said machine to receive the shaft thereof and having aplurality of chambers arranged therein about said shaft, means forconveying a portion of said fluid from said compressor through one ofsaid chambers to said vaporizer, means for conveying another portion ofsaid fluid in its high pressure liquid state from said condenser throughanother of said chambers to said vaporizer, and means for regulating thepressure of the portion of said fluid flowing through the said anotherof said chambers.

3. In combination with a condenser, a vaporizer, and a machine forcompressing and continuously circulating a fluid serially through saidmachine, condenser and vaporizer, of means for preventing escape of saidfluid to the exterior of said machine comprising an extension for thecasing of said machine to receive the shaft thereof and having aplurality of chambers arranged therein about said shaft, means forconveying a portion of said fluid from said compressor through one ofsaid chambers to said vaporizer, means for conveying another portion ofsaid fluid in its high pressure liquid state from said condenser throughanother of said chambers to said vaporizer, means for cooling the saidanother portion of said fluid after leaving said condenser and beforeflow thereof through the said another of said chambers, and means forregulating the pressure of the said another portion of said fluidflowing through the said another of said chambers.

4. In combination with a condenser, a vaporizer, and a machine forcompressing and continuously circulating a fluid serially through saidmachine, compressors and vaporizer, of means for preventing escape ofsaid fluid to the exterior of said machine comprising an extension forthe casing of said machine to receive the shaft thereof and having aplurality of chambers arranged therein about said shaft, means forconveying a portion of said fluid from said condenser through one ofsaid chambers to said vaporizer, means for conveying another portion ofsaid fluid in its liquid high pressure state from said condenser throughanother of said chambers to said vaporizer, a reservoir included in theconnection for conveying the said another portion of said fluid from thesaid another of said chambers to said vaporizer, valve means included inthe connections for conveying the said fluid to the said another of saidchambers for regulating the pressure of the said another portion of saidfluid flowing throughthe said another of said chambers into the saidreservoir, and a float valve for regulating the flow of said anotherportion of said fluid from said reservoir into said vaporizer.

5. In combination with a condenser, a vaporizer, and a machine forcompressing and continuously circulating a fluid serially through saidmachine, condenser and vaporizer, of means for preventing escape of saidfluid to the exterior of said machine comprising an extension for thecasing of said machine to receive the shaft thereof and having aplurality of chambers arranged therein about said shaft, means forconveying a portion of said fluid from said compressor through one ofsaid chambers to said vaporizer to cool said shaft and to condenserefrigerant vapor flowing from said machine into the said one of saidchambers, means for conveying another portion of said fluid in its highpressure liquid sealing gland closing the end of said extension aboutsaid shaft having a chamber therein for receiving refrigerant flowingfrom said another of said chambers, and connections for dischargingrefrigerant from the last said chamber into said vaporizer.

ADOLF BAUMANN.

